Mismatch
by keeper of most knowledge
Summary: These mismatched eyes... They look upon the painful world, not with hate, but with wonder, and hope. "Maybe one day, there will be a safe place for all, but until then, this'll have to do" Highly AU story, probably epic. Enjoy!


Reflections in a Sunset

What strange, reminiscent feeling come unbidden to one's soul as you gaze peacefully into a sunset, watching the ever – fading colours mix and change before your eyes.

Here, in my home in the valley, I am alone, for the moment, and being alone means you must think, and feel, not having minor distractions to detract from the beauty of nature. A breeze stirs my rough and shaggy locks, and the child in my arms moves a little, then settles.

Sighing, I brush the offending locks away, touching the four whisker marks on my right cheek briefly. They are a direct result of my having the most powerful demon in existence trapped in my body, unlike my mismatched eyes, which are a lasting gift from my mother. Together with shockingly white hair, and a permanently visible seal on my lower back, plus two crescent scars over my eyes, I am an instantly recognisable person, and a horrific thing to look upon for those who are unaccustomed to my unique visage. To them, I am a monster, an outcast, something to be hated and reviled, to be avoided at all costs. Unfortunately, the animosity of adults rubs off onto their progeny, and from an early age I was beaten, abused, mocked, and completely alone. This totalitarian torture only compounded after I entered the ninja academy.

So very few people recognized me for who I was, a person, not a Bijuu incarnate. Unfortunately, most of them are now lost to me. Namikaze Minato, and Mochika, the Narutohki siblings, Hatake Sakumo, Senju Hashirama and his brother, and the only Uchiha who never tried to kill me, Uchiha Obito.

But then, looking out over the valley that was now my responsibility, I couldn't help but smile. When I had announced that I was leaving Konohagakure no Satou, **for good**, two people had quietly come forward, and said that they would join me. Aburame Shippai had been the first. A lucky survivor of the frontline shinobi sent up against the Kyuubi, she was tired of being hated for what she was, a half breed of Aburame. I couldn't agree more. The second had been young Hagane Kana. She had come to me, in the middle of the night, three weeks before we left, and had said,

"I'm coming with you." As the only other member of her clan, along with her brother, Hagane Kotetsu, she was already being eyed off as breeding material by the clan – hungry Council, even though she was only 13.

And then there was Namira Yuni. As the child of the Jinchuuriki no Shichibi no Mujina, she had potential, and I didn't want that potential to be squandered by the Council on frivolous things. Also, as the first generation child of a Jinchuuriki, she could contain a new Kekkei Genkai, and it would be for the best if she was kept away from highly populated areas, especially if it turned out to be a highly destructive Kekkei Genkai. And she was the only reminder of that last, fateful mission that I had taken.

Sarutobi – ojii, the Sandaime Hokage, had taken the news of her leaving hard. However, he had accepted it, as he realised that, like Tsunade, she couldn't stay in the village that had caused her so much pain. But, Old Saru had protested bitterly at the loss of one of his most talented ANBU taichou, and the loss of two valuable potential broodmares. I had put my foot down firmly, and told him, under no uncertain terms that I would be forming my own Hidden Village, Ranpugakure, the Village Hidden in the Light, a clear reference to my Tenma Hijutsu.

It had been an uphill battle to get here, being attacked by multiple ANBU teams and Hunter Nin, but once we were within the borders of Tanima no Kuni, the attacks stopped, mainly because I had summoned a huge cohort of Ookami to protect us. Having summoned that many wolves at once also had another effect, alerting the Daimyo, and my cousin, to my arrival home. Mind you, by that stage I had acquired a few more followers, Sarkana – obaa – san, and her baby granddaughter, Kisa, and an Iwa refugee, Ranma.

It was a relief to get home, but upon seeing the remnants of the once – bustling Nameshaste homestead, I began to think again. It would be a huge task to simply clean the building of stray animals and litter. Five levels, and the fact that most of it was rotting stone made staying inside dangerous, but it had been a month now, and so far, so good. Most of the sagging floors had been propped up with sturdy new beams, and we were working on rebuilding the outer walls. It would be months before we could truly say, _this_ is our home, but, in the meantime, we could always hope.

And that's the only thing you can do, in the end. Hope.

**AN: OMG, I'm so sorry that Mikomi is taking so long, but I've hit another rut in the fourth chapter . ducks flying tomatoes Exams and assignments are coming down heavy on us, at school, so I haven't really been able to focus too well. HOWEVER, holidays are coming up in about two weeks, so I'll be able to write to my heart's content. **

**Ok. As you can see, this story is following **_**similar**_** lines as Mikomi, but that is where the similarity ends. Mismatch has been running about inside my head for the better part of a year, and I have finally succeeded in capturing a few of the rabid plot bunnies. I promise that none of my stories will be abandoned (Apart from DarkClaw... My X – Men muse died), and that I will, however infrequently, update, eventually. Thank you for putting up with my horrendous writing habits, it's just that I pull a Shikamaru and go and cloud – gaze instead of writing. Thank you for (hopefully!) taking the time to read this.**

**keeper of most knowledge**


End file.
